What is public health?
Public health impacts our lives every day. The study of public health addresses many of the most pressing issues of our time, from ensuring access to safer foods and controlling the spread of disease to providing support for individuals to improve their diet or quit smoking. As our nation’s health challenges continue to grow, the United States faces an imminent shortage of public health professionals.
To help fill this need, the College of Charleston developed a one-of-a-kind interdisciplinary undergraduate degree in Public Health, allowing students to pursue either a Bachelor of Science (B.S.) or a Bachelor of Arts (B.A.). The Bachelor of Arts degree is housed in the School of Humanities and Social Sciences, and this undergraduate public health program is one of the first of its kind in the nation. Students who choose this major may be interested in the growing areas of health communication, health policy, or even health administration. In addition to four required courses (Introduction to Public Health, Global Health, Epidemiology, and Health Communication), the B.A. degree offers interdisciplinary courses in the following departments: Anthropology, Biology, Communication, Environmental Studies, History, Philosophy, Political Science, Psychology, Sociology, and Urban Studies. Faculty members from all of these departments will contribute courses related to public health in their area of specialty. These faculty will continue to build ties to the local and national health community, providing students with the opportunity for internships and jobs with local and national health organizations.
Beth Sundstrom, Ph.D., M.P.H.
One new faculty member, Beth Sundstrom, Ph.D., M.P.H., an Assistant Professor in the Department of Communication specializing in Strategic Health Communication, will teach in the public health program. Dr. Sundstrom brings strategic health communication consulting experience to her undergraduate and graduate courses on such topics as strategic communication, social marketing, and health communication. According to Dr. Sundstrom:
“Public health is a multidisciplinary field drawing on expertise from an eclectic array of academic and practical approaches. This degree offers students access to a diversity of scholarship with the goal of positioning them to be thinkers and leaders in the field of public health.”
What can students do with a degree in public health?
Graduates will be prepared for a variety of careers in public health. They may choose to work as an environmental policy advisor, HIV/AIDS advocate, or legislative assistant for the federal government, in such agencies as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) or the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Non-profit organizations, such as a local chapter of a national non-profit like the American Heart Association or local organizations such as the Lowcountry Food Bank or the Center for Women offer opportunities to work as health educators or health administrators. Graduates might coordinate market research for consulting firms or serve private companies as management policy advisors. Others may choose careers as health journalists or strategic communication professionals. The B.A. in public health also prepares students to pursue advanced degrees, such as a Master of Public Health (MPH) or a Master of Health Administration (MHA).
About B.A. Program Director, Jenifer Kopfman, Ph.D.
Jen Kopfman, Ph.D.
The B.A. program will be directed by Dr. Jenifer Kopfman, an Associate Professor in the Department of Communication. Dr. Kopfman has extensive teaching, research and applied experience in communication and public health. With a research focus in health communication, she has designed and evaluated health campaigns, investigating health topics ranging from organ donation to cancer screening. Her research interests led to positions as a Health Communication Research Fellow and Health Education Specialist at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta. Dr. Kopfman left the CDC to join the faculty at the College of Charleston in 2007.
Dr. Kopfman said:
“I’m excited to offer our College of Charleston students the opportunity to study public health. Our students will gain real world experience addressing some of the most pressing issues of our time and engaging on the local and national level to become leaders in the field of public health.”
For more information about a Bachelor’s of Arts in Public Health, contact Dr. Kopfman at kopfmanj@cofc.edu.